Paris in Two Days is the perfect amount of time to see this beautiful, sprawling city full of epic monuments and historic sites. It charms you with the little hidden streets you stumble upon and get lost exploring. You could spend a lot longer than two days here, but I think we did well with the time that we had!
Day 1
The Arc de Triomphe
This is as one would expect – lots of tourists and people taking pictures – just like us. We had a good look around, took some pictures and that was pretty much it! You can obviously go to the top, but we decided against it. We would be going to the Eiffel Tower later that day anyway and you can’t beat that view!
Eiffel Tower
Next, we walked straight to one of the most iconic pieces of architecture in the world: The Eiffel Tower. We wandered around to the Champ de Mars Gardens and took a few snaps from a distance. A photoshoot is always fun!
By now I had begun to get nervous. I went to the Eiffel tower on a school trip once and I was so scared I did not even make it to the first floor. I hoped that I would be able to conquer that fear and make it to the top… Especially being a few years older and having support from lovely James. Sadly I did not. I didn’t even make it to the 2nd floor! I did make it to the first floor though, despite breakdowns, tears and pep talks, which is at least something!
Overall, I enjoyed this landmark – it was beautiful and well worth the visit even though I have seen it before.
The Louvre
According to google maps, the walk to the The Louvre, was 44 minutes along the Seine. It felt a little too far at this late, cold stage of the day – so we took hire bikes! The hire bikes can be found all over Paris and were free to use for under an hour. Plus, the Seine has a path exclusively for pedestrians and cyclists – perfect for us. These are perfect if you have limited time like us and are only seeing Paris in Two Days.
By the time we reached The Louvre the sky was getting darker. If anything, it made the place more magical. The lights on the Pyramid are stunning. We didn’t go inside as we’re not massive art fans but the view outside is worth the effort.
Tuileries Gardens and Christmas Market
We also wandered around the Tuileries Gardens and browsed the Christmas Market nearby. It was typical of the average Christmas Markets! However, it was quite large and held a real range of tasty food products, wine, and gifts. Plus a dozen carnival rides, and an ice rink. I really liked this market and wish I had spent more time there. However, we had somewhere else in mind for dinner!
Dinner: Le Dernier Bar Avant la Fin du Monde
‘Le Dernier Bar avant la Fin du Monde‘ or ‘The Last Bar Before the End of the World’, was our spot for dinner! Dernier Bar is a praised as one of the best geek bars around! So, it’s not particularly French but a curiosity for us! We are big fans of stuff like Star Wars, Marvel and LOTR. Highlights included the 40 cm hot dog that I could barely finish; Table names such as Mario and Peach in lieu of numbers; and various items like the Millennium Falcon, R2-D2 and a huge Venom on display. They also have a wide selection of board games in various languages that we made use of – I won!
Notre Dame
Our evening was nicely rounded with a trip to Notre Dame! A landmark I had been particularly keen to come and see thanks to a love of the Disney Movie the Hunch back of Notre Dame. There was a beautiful Christmas Tree right in the centre of the square and a lovely little Christmas Market.
Day 2
If you’re doing Paris in Two Days, you need to make it an early start!
The Sacre Coeur
First stop of the day was The Sacre Coeur! For those who don’t know this is on the top of a very big, steep hill. You can walk through the picturesque gardens to the top! There is an option to go up a lift but if you don’t want to spend the money or fancy some exercise like we did, then do bring some trainer/walking shoes.
Views from the top are truly spectacular and worth the climb. You can also go up into the Basilica! We might have done that, but the ticket office was closed for a few hours so if that’s something you’re interested in, I would look at opening times ahead.
Montemarte
The Sacre Coeur is situated in the Montemarte district. It is a total contrast to the surrounding areas; the winding cobbled streets are small and absolutely charming. Here you will find little shops, restaurants selling escargots and frogs legs and the infamous artists square. Sure, it’s a total tourist trap but theres a reason why this little place is so popular. We wandered aimlessly for a few hours, getting a hot wine to sip on the way.
Boulevard de Clichy
We wandered down Boulevard de Clichy to see the Moulin Rouge and the Red Light District! Now this was truly an experience. There were so many sex shops displaying various toys, costumes and other delights as well as shows with the promise of girls and ‘pussy’. Not really my cup of tea but we pushed onto to have a look at the Moulin Rouge (sadly too expensive to go see a show) and I even braved a sex shop on the way back!
Dinner: Chez Eugene
We made our way back up to the Scare Coeur to the restaurant Chez Eugene we has picked out earlier for James. I’m so glad we came back in darkness as the Church really is stunning when light up and we could even see it from the seating area outside of the restaurant.
Chez Eugene had amazing food washed down with a healthy dose of red wine. We stayed there all night, popping out for an hour to sit on the square and back in again for some live music. A thoroughly good time was had by all and a few sore heads on the train ride to the Hague the next morning!
So, that was Paris in Two Days: chilled but full of sites and activities!
What did you think of my Paris in Two Days Itinerary?
Let me know in the comments section!
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Looks like your having a great trip so far , did you recognise the gargoyles on the Notre Dame from the Disney film ? Look forward to the next one xx